Create a Romantic Cottage Bathroom

Are you thinking about creating a cottage bathroom in your home? There’s a reason cottage style decorating is so hot. It’s a cozy, airy, feel-like-you’re-vacationing-at-the-seaside kind of feeling. But the one room of the house that gets the least attention is the perfect place to create cottage style.

The bathroom is an ideal space to add a little cottage chic. The square footage is generally small and unless you’re planning a major remodel, you already have the foundation (and most expensive) pieces. Creating cottage style is just a matter of adding the extras and it's as simple as three easy steps:

• Just decide on your cottage bathroom style. Cottage style can be elegant or cottage cozy, whimsical or even elegantly chic.
• Make sure you have the cottage elements. That might mean buying new fixtures or hardware. On the other hand, it might just be finding creative ways to use what you have.
• Pile on the cottage accessories… not. A cottage bathroom can be characteristically cluttered or streamlined and efficient.

A romantic cottage bathroom is yours to be had with a little time, effort and creativity.

If you’ve thumbed through any decorating magazines recently, then you know white is synonymous with cottage style.  White walls, white furniture and accessories. But white isn’t the only color to add cottage charm to your bathroom décor. Pastel blues and greens – the color of nature and the sea – can add a tranquil charm. Try Robin’s Nest Blue or Grasslands Green to bring a clean, light feel to your bath.  

Pops of color also work great in a cottage white bathroom. And I do mean bright. Try turquoise accents in art, towels or even paint the vanity cabinet. Add red, yellow or even black into your cottage bathroom. Against the white walls it’s sure to stand out.

Not all colors of white are… white. Cottage white, ivory and other variations can soften the starkness of an “all white” room.

Okay, you might not have the space, but if you do… bring it in. Freestanding cottage bathroom furniture is a sure way to add cottage charm. A dresser would be good or even a small night stand or table. Painted, of course. Color choice is yours. But make sure to distress it so it looks like it withstood the test of time.

Use sandpaper and sand the corners, edges and other places where wear would normally show until the under layer of paint or wood show through. Then let nature take it’s course. Over time, it will receive more wear and tear.

If you can’t fit an extra piece of furniture in your bathroom, then consider a new bathroom vanity cabinetin a cottage style. Today’s fixtures come in a variety of styles for instant nostalgic style. If a new vanity cabinet is not in the budget then it’s time to turn to… you guessed it… paint.

Where to start… or finish. Depending on the style of cottage bathroom décor you’re after, choices for accessories are wide open. Here are a few ideas:

• Seashells - what's a cottage bathroom without them. Fill up a jar (mix with strings of pearls), glue to a mirror frame or just set a large shell on a counter top.
• Painted and silver trays to pile beautiful glass perfume bottles or to hold jewelry.
• Bring in a cake pedestal to hold pretty soaps and small glass jars to pins or q-tips.
• Hang summer straw hats from a nostalgic-looking metal hooks.
• Use mirrors everywhere -- you can never have to many in a bathroom.
• Add some cottage glam with a chandelier -- lots of crystals, please.
• Glass shelves -- filled with decorative cottage finds.
• Wicker for wastebaskets and to hold a variety of other bathroom necessities. Paint in your favorite cottage colors or leave natural.
• And last, and most importantly, large, fluffy towels.
  

A bathroom should be your own private retreat. Need more help? Check out Masterful Master Bathroom Ideas on Bathroom Decor Answers.

Katherine Koch (aka Netlexis) is a freelance writer providing copywriting services online and offline. When she's not writing for clients, she enjoys creating hubs here at HubPages, as well as for her own sites and at Squidoo. If you enjoyed this hub, you might also like to read:

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